The Myth of Self-Sufficiency The ideal in the United States is personal self-sufficiency. But this is a myth, an unattainable pursuit that will eventually leave us broken or alone—or both. John Donne understood this. He said “No man is an island, entire of itself; every man is a piece of the continent.” We need others; […]
In this blog, I write a lot about the church. My comments are mostly critical. This isn’t because I hate the church. It’s because I love the church. Really I do. If I didn’t care, I wouldn’t bother to point out how church could be better. The church often falls short of what it could […]
I haven’t gone to church for the past two weeks. First, I was sick and stayed home to sleep. Last week, my wife and I headed off for a church that met in an office complex, but the doors were locked. I’ll save that story for later. I wasn’t bothered about not being in church […]
Many years ago, when public access to the internet was in its infancy and dialup was the only means to connect, I pondered the idea of church online. The World Wide Web did not exist then, so I considered if Usenet (online discussion boards), file sharing, and email could cobble together a church experience. I […]
Consider the Importance of Church Attendance I often write about the importance of being in meaningful community with other followers of Jesus. I also lament that churches frequently fail to provide significant community. While many churches offer superficial community, few are able to provide a deep, nurturing, caring place. I long for this level of […]
As I consider biblical Christianity, I feel a strong pull to community, a place where significant spiritual connections occur. This should be our experience at church, the reality of church, but it seldom is. We need true Christian community. A friend read my updated home page on this website and asked, “Where do we find […]
Pursue Christian Community As a child, my parents told me we went to church to learn about God. The sermon was when I learned about God, so I assumed the rest of the service was unnecessary. I deemed everything outside the message as obligatory filler and tuned it out, waiting for the main event. According […]
A few weeks ago, the church service kicked off with a discussion question: “What is church?” We broke into small groups with those sitting around us. After exchanging introductions (why hadn’t we already done this?), we stared in silence. As a visitor, I didn’t want to go first, but the silence invited me. “I’ve thought […]
Don’t Celebrate Your Successes and Hide Your Shortcomings A friend once told how he gave his TV away; he didn’t want one anymore. It was a spiritual act, a voluntary fast from television and the distractions it provided, in order to give him more time for God and family. He reveled in his decision and […]
Reasons People Give for Going to Church I often wonder why I go to church. Seldom do I come up with a good answer, that is, the real reason why I show up on Sundays. I’m not even sure if I know the theologically correct response. Here are some reasons I’ve heard over the years: […]